DocuSign

DocuSign comes to the table as the most widely-used e-signature provider in real estate. As a REALTOR Benefits® partner, and in collaboration with NAR, the company has created the DocuSign for REALTORS® Edition exclusively for NAR members at a special price. Its industry saturation means that the program plays nicely with other software that users may already employ (Cartavi, ZipLogix, etc.). And through March 31, members get an even deeper discount on the prepaid annual plan.

What do you get for free?

The free "personal" version allows you to send out five documents requesting others’ signatures, but the number of documents that you sign yourself is unlimited. It also offers PDF conversion and 43 different signing languages. You won't have access to some premium features, such as sending reminders, adding tags for signers, and using templates. However, DocuSign has made the member package available as a free trial. For 30 days, members get access to features that real estate agents have identified as business essentials, which are far more complex than what the free version offers.

Dotloop

“Signatures are a detail, not a solution,” says Alex Allison, DotLoop’s marketing director, by way of explaining that his company doesn’t like to think of itself as an e-signature company, but more of a holistic transaction management solution. They offer interactive, branded documents that are a sophisticated step up from writable PDFs. The full-service dashboard promises the ability for brokers and office managers to stay on top of agents, track business, and prompt users for responses to paperwork needs.

What do you get for free?

According to Allison, some 90 to 95 percent of DotLoop’s independent users do not require anything more than the free option, which includes unlimited signatures and documents with a space cap of 1GB. But he notes that agents whose broker or company has a DotLoop account (such as Keller Williams and others) have unlimited access to the full range products offered by the company at no cost to them.

For independent agents there is a $20/month premium version available. The broker solution ranges from $200 to $300/month; Cincinnati, Ohio; dotloop.com.

RightSignature

Simplicity is the focus of this e-signature company, which boasts the ability to create and send a document for signature in 60 seconds or less. RightSignature’s personal service option (starting at $11 per month) doesn’t have the 20 templates, customization features, and ability to create signable forms out of normal documents that the business option has. However, all plans include encryption and biometric authentication, customer support, and mobile functionality with apps and Google Doc integration.

What do you get for free?

Not much, really. RightSignature offers a five-signature, no obligation trial for free, but that’s clearly more to try-before-you-buy than it is a freebie.